reliability issues with these brands?

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fishblade2

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I'm new to traditional muzzleloading. I want a blunderbuss and a brown bess. So of course I've been doing some researching and some looking. I have found the websites Military Heritage, Middlesex village, and Loyalist Arms. Now for the prices between these websites for the same product varies. For A brown bess at Military Heritage it's 550, at Loyalist Arms it's 600 and something, and I have even seen at dixiegun works the gun sell for over 1,000. I was wondering why the difference in prices? Are some cheaper made than others, or some less reliable? I am not trying to make anybody mad by saying a certain brand or seller makes bad guns because I have seen on some other threads people get a little hateful over this topic. I have also read on some forums that the holes are not drilled in some of them when you get them and that for some of the others that metal might not be up to par in the guns which in turn will fail under a lot of shooting. All I want is to find a good replica gun that is reliable and able to be shot over and over. I don't go and shoot every day black powder but I also don't just shoot once or twice a year, but when I do shoot I want a reliable gun that brings consistent fun. I know originals probably are most reliable (could be wrong) but I don't like the prices of originals (A $1000 is not that bad but original matchlocks... whew.... all I can say..). So I just want to know the best option and some explanation on the drilling of holes in the gun. Don't quite understand this even after some reading.. Please also add some pointers to look out for things to ask before buying a traditional firearm etc. Thanks!
 
I allmost bought a Baker rifle replica that they sell. There was one on a gun rack for sale [used] and I took a look at it. From 25 feet away it looked good but upon inspecting it I saw that it was smooth bore. The fit and finish was very poor for the money wanted as well.

Some people claim very good luck with with the Indian imports though. Apparently their return policy is good. Their Brown Bess may be OK but the Baker "rifle" I looked at was just a wall hanger.

The only Brown Bess original I have seen that I thought would/might be a shooter was going for over $3000 and it had been converted to a caplock by the military.
 
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yeah see that's what I've heard is that they are wall hangers so I'm trying to figure out which is not the indian imports so I don't run that risk.. I was hoping this military heritage was not a indian import and if so I need somewhere that I could purchase traditional firearms without doing auctions where they pay 3000 for a gun...
 
Well I guess Thompson Center, Lyman and Pedersoli come to mind first. By the time you get all the gear you need to shoot a flintlock, including the price of the gun, expect to pay around $600 at least.

That would give you a new Lyman Trade rifle, cleaning supplies, swaged balls, spare flints, a couple of pounds of black powder, flask, a mold for casting your own and a couple yards of cloth for patches.
 
If I really wanted a Brown Bess I would buy a Pedersoli. A Blunder Buss would be Sitting Fox or Tennesee Valley Manufacturing.
 
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